Eating Myself Well-One Month Update

One month ago, I started eating according to the Wahls Protocol. The goal: to improve my health. In the last four years I’ve been basically unable to work. For months, I’d wake up exhausted and move from sleeping in bed to resting on the couch then back to the bed. Even simple tasks of daily living were out of the question. I had to choose between brushing my hair and brushing my teeth. I simply was too tired to do both. Two to three migraines per week were the norm.

A few months ago, we found that extra salt in my diet made the migraines abate. The exhaustion improved, but remained debilitating.

After four weeks of eating to support my mitochondria, how do I feel? There was a noticeable difference after a week. My deep body muscle and joint pains have nearly disappeared. My sleep improved, my energy improved and stamina, which was practically nonexistent, made a comeback. A month later, I don’t wake up feeling exhausted. I am still having morning adrenal rushes (waking up with a pounding heart), but hopefully that will stop soon. I’m able to do some work though the day instead of ending up crashed out on the couch in early afternoon not to move again. An afternoon nap allows me to recover from energy spent in the morning and then get up and make dinner. It has been YEARS since I’ve been able to do come back from an afternoon crash.

Saturday, we went on a three hour walk on our local bike track. My only problem was I got blisters from wearing older sandals. Instead of being stuck in my bed for days after the walk, I went home, hydrated, ate a peach then off to the beach for a swim. The next day I was more tired than I have been, but it didn’t stop me from going to the Farmers’ Market and then for a walk in a local historical area.

People have asked me if it is hard to get my nine cups of vegetables in a day (three cups dark leafy greens, three cups sulphur-rich veggies and three cups colorful veggies and low carb fruit, see the link at the beginning of the article for more detail). The truth is, it is easier than you think. I was a bit bloated for a few days early on, but that soon passed. I’ve come to regard the space in my stomach as a valuable commodity. I need to get my nine in, so anything that doesn’t count towards that number or isn’t high quality protein or fat, well, I simply don’t have the room or inclination. The fact that I’m now grain-free, sugar/sweetener-free and casein-free simply doesn’t matter. I don’t have the room anyway.

Some days I DON’T get all my cups in. I can’t be too neurotic about it. It really isn’t a state of emergency if I only get in eight cups or-gasp-even seven, but I do make an effort to make the nutrients up the next day. After all, my food is my medicine and I need to get my dosages on average.

I’ve learned that leafy green chips (kale, chard, etc) are a big help as well as being delicious. Four cups of kale dehydrate down to one cup of kale chips, so that is a real stomach real estate space saver. The same goes for green smoothies, I usually have one in the morning with a cup of colorful fruit, so that is two cups down in a few swigs. Although I’m happy to have sautéed onions and mushrooms, getting my sulphur-rich veggies in became easier when I discovered Cauliflower Popcorn. These caramelized crucifers are cheap, easy and the snackable taste will knock your socks off. As for colorful foods, well, I’ve had no worries on that front. How hard can it be to eat colorful peppers, berries, fruit, carrots, kumara (sweet potato) and pumpkin?

Losing weight isn’t the main goal of changing my eating habits, but I’ve lost 3 lbs and an inch off of my hips. Nothing ground shaking, but a nice side effect. I won’t be surprised if weight starts to fall off more easily as my body heals and continues to get the nutrients I need.

I still have a very long way to go to be back to a level of function that people would consider normal, but I’m on the right road and it only took four weeks to get this far.

How are you feeling this week? Does your body need some nutritional healing?

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Ginny
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March 19, 2013

I LOVE green smoothies! Our recipe doesn’t add any dairy, but you can easily do that. We toss 2 bananas, a handful of other fruit (strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, mango, raspberries, oranges, pineapple (whole, including core) etc, etc, etc…….) a big handful of greens (spinach, kale, mixed greens, romaine hearts, etc, etc, etc) and maybe some smaller greens (carrot tops or parsley are always great) into the blender, add a little fruit juice or honey for a touch more sweetness, and enough liquid to give it a smooth texture, and blend away. It helps to have a super tough blender to handle the tough veggies and fruits (like pineapple core). You can’t taste the green in it, all the flavor is fruit, and its delicious! I hate to be without my smoothies, and its a super fast and easy way to sneak more veggies into my diet without trying!

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Handful
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March 19, 2013

Thanks, Ginny. This encourages me to take the plunge. I like kale and spinach well enough but am having trouble with that translating into a drink. If it tastes more like fruit I will like it I am sure.

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Ginny
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March 19, 2013

Yup! Its all about proportions 🙂 It become like a milkshake or other thick drink, so long as your blender can handle all the fiber. We have a blendtec and I love it, it chews through pineapple cores with no problem!

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Wow that’s great news, I’m so pleased for you that it’s making such a difference. It’s great that it’s something so simple too. We all know that we should eat more vegetables, and you’re a great example of why. It’s much better than having to take pharmaceutical drugs.

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I’m trying to use get more nutrients in my diet too. I find that when I think through what I’m going to eat, instead of just grabbing something, it makes a big difference. Luckily, I love spinach so I often make green smoothies with spinach, apples, Greek yogurt and whatever else is laying around–lately, I’ve been tossing in carrots and pineapple too.
Do you ever use protein powder in your smoothies?MyKidsEatSquid recently posted..Why aren’t you eating…coconut peanut butter?

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I’m so pleased to hear you are feeling better. Keep up the hard work. I cannot wait for the doggone snow to stop so that I can plant my seeds in the greenhouse. I’m not a great gardener, but I can grow kale like nobody’s business. Yay 4 Kale!Roxanne recently posted..Everything OK After Lilly&#8217;s Sudden Collapse

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Ginny
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March 13, 2013

CONGRATS!! That is huge progress!! I would love to be able to work towards this, though I think it will take me some more time.
Do you have a recipe that you use specifically for your kale chips? Do you season or flavor them in any way? I think I’d like to try this at some point because I do like kale, but the rest of the guys in the house are a bit picky.
Keep up the progress, can’t wait to hear more!

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teebee
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March 12, 2013

Sound like exciting results! It’s great to be focussing on what you CAN eat rather than what you can’t. Cauliflower works well chopped finely in the food processor to make ‘rice’ which goes with any kind of nut-sauce, and is also good in florets spread with nut butter and sprinkled with sesame seeds as an alternative to bread/wheat crackers. You can also make amazing seed crackers from just seeds, water, garlic and salt (include chia or flax to help it all stick), if you’ve got any room left after eating all your greens and veg that is!
Thanks for sharing your experience and tips.

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Great to hear it is having such a positive impact. My husband and I did a trial a while ago of doing an alkaline diet in a hard core way. The results were amazing….usually Im so tired and have a constant brain fog. After a couple of weeks of loads of veges and fruit etc I had so much energy and mental clarity off the scale…couldnt believe the difference in such a short time. And yes, like you we have always eaten well, very little meat, lots of vege….but obviously not the right combination. The one thing I struggle with is finding something to eat for breakfast….Im not into broccoli smoothies -ewww! Got any ideas for breakfasts that arent hideous? Cheers, Gabby.

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Green smoothies are make with leafy green, not usually broccoli. Mix them with berries and you don’t really taste them anyway. Also try sautéed greens, mushrooms and onions with a scrambled egg mixed in. Leftovers are also a good option.

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Diana
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March 12, 2013

Great to hear this is working for you. I haven’t looked at the video yet so not sure of the science behind it but I’m thinking enzymes? Have you also researched into the drink called Kombucha? I think it would be very beneficial to you as well as being a totally frugal easy drink that you make yourself at home. I’ve been enjoying it as a tasty beverage as well as gaining heaps of health benefits for the past 5 years! Heaps of info online.
Keep up the focus it sounds like your quality of life is greatly increasing 🙂

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Karen Hann
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March 12, 2013

This way of eating is so amazing! I’m a week in and I have my ankles back and no more odema. Like you my deep muscle aches have disappeared along with stiffness. Joints are free from pain.
I’ve lost 2.5kg as a wonderful side affect.
I have so much energy which I haven’t had for so long that I’m now dragging out my exercise video and I’m going to start some strength exercises at my local gym next week.
Please keep us all updated with your results so it will spur us all on to continue. Your doing so well.
I thank you everyday for putting me in the right direction.

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Glad you are feeling better, Karen. Be careful with exercise for the first month or so. I’m not saying do none, but you don’t want to overstress your body whilst it is changing over from burning carbs as its primary fuel to burning fat.

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I have just started this journey of eating whole foods and not the processed garbage they pass for food these days and while it’s not always easy, I feel totally jazzed that I know what is going into my family’s dinner.Teresa recently posted..My New Interest &#8211; Permaculture

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I’m inspired by this as I think it will help even though I don’t have the same issues you deal with. Another aspect is that it means we can cut out another layer of supermarket purchases and eat from our own garden. 8)

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Krystel Watts
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March 12, 2013

Just wondering if you have any links to good green smoothie recipes as this is something I need to add into my diet but I really have no idea where to start! And am a little nervous about experimenting incase it tastes really bad!!

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For two servings, I use a cup of almond or coconut milk, a BIG handful of greens, 1-2 cups of fruit (usually blueberries, but sometimes whatever is in season and cheap) and an avocado for creaminess and fat. If you don’t have access to cheap avocados and your body is okay with bananas, use that for creaminess and add a couple of tablespoons of melted coconut oil for fat.

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Roimata
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March 13, 2013

You may be surprised how delicious green smoothies really are! I don’t tend to put much fat in mine, I prefer them “fresh” tasting rather than creamy (I’m not sure if fresh is quite the right word there). I don’t use a recipe, just chuck things in the blender.
My smoothie today had 2 cups of parsley, a small handful of mint, an orange, a banana, 1 cup of boysenberries, 1/2 teaspoon of powdered seaweed, a splash of flax oil and 500ml of kombucha. That made enough for me, my husband and our 2 year old.
I find kale a bit green tasting, so if you’re starting out you may want to try some milder greens like cos lettuce or spinach.

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I’m just thrilled for you. I wish I could join your experiment, but unfortunately, totally different physical problems won’t allow me to eat a lot of things on the list. Humans are complex. Food is complex. We need to find what works for each individual. and this seems to be the real answer for you. It’s about time!!!Vera Marie Badertscher recently posted..Cara Black Invites You to Paris. Oui?

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So glad to hear the really positive results. I watched Dr Wahls video today, it is so inspiring. Kind of all the things we know we should eat, but maybe not why and also the quantity required. Will definitely be making some changes to my diet, the kale chips for one and green smoothies another.
Thanks so much for sharing this info.Bridget recently posted..Mega pasta making session – UPDATE

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Melanie – So thrilled for you. There are so many ways to get veggies into your diet and it sounds like you are finding lots of yummy ways to do it. I, too, love roasted cauliflower. I could easily eat a whole head just by myself. Try mixing some golden raisins in the last few minutes of roasting – a really great combo.

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9 cups a day! I want to do this!! I feel noticeably better when I swear off sweets and eat more veggies, especially raw ones. BUT then I raid my daughter’s birthday cake or the leftover jelly beans from her party. Sigh. For me it’s easy to know my best diet (rice is good, meat is good, fish is even better, lots and lots of veggies, olive oil, nuts; NO sweets of any kind; fresh fruits, especially pineapple, tiny amounts of cheese, raw milk in very moderate quantities) but it’s so hard to do it. Then I feel bad about myself for raiding the candy as my blood sugar whacks out…Jennifer Margulis recently posted..Our Little Boy’s Birth Story by Marisa Soboleski

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Oh that is so wonderful. It makes me happy to think of your body healing and you having more energy and zest.

In my younger years, I used to be somewhat maniacal about healthy eating, and I’m not sure where I fell off that cart. Maybe somewhere around the time I had kids and just never seemed to have enough time for everything (and it *was a bit of extra work to eat healthfully).